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Darwin’s house included on list
THE former home of canoe conman John Darwin has been included in a new list of prestigious buildings.
But town leaders have stressed the house has been selected due to its special architectural interest and not because of Darwin, who faked his own death in a £680,000 life insurance swindle.
Darwin lived with his wife Anne at 3 and 4 The Cliff, in Seaton Carew, which has panoramic views of the North Sea.
Hartlepool Borough Council included it among a 188-strong list of Locally Listed Buildings.
The final list recognises buildings of special architectural or historic interest.
Former prison guard Darwin became notorious around the world after admitting faking his own death in a 2002 canoeing accident to allow his wife, Anne, to claim the life insurance.
He was sentenced to six years and three months behind bars in July 2008.
Mayor Stuart Drummond, who approved the list, said the home was of architectural merit with other properties on The Cliff, numbers 1 to 5, also being included.
Mayor Drummond portfolio holder for community safety and planning, said: “The reason The Cliff has been included is because of the building itself and not because of the people that have lived there.
“It is about helping to protect the building for the future.”
The full list includes a wide range of buildings including pubs, schools and war memorials.
A bus shelter in the village of Elwick and cast-iron lamppost in Middlegate, on the Headland, are also included after being nominated by residents.
Civic chiefs say it all comes down to a matter of taste.
The bus shelter was erected to commemorate the coronation of King George VI in 1937 while the lamppost dates back to 1903.
Meanwhile, The Cliff was designed in 1876 by local architect Thomas Walker.
Mayor Drummond added: “What we wanted to do was to ask the public what buildings were important to Hartlepool.
“We had a decent response and what this does is help raise the profile of these buildings.
“There is no statutory protection as a result of being on the list.
“But it gives people in the community and the local authority the knowledge that these are important buildings.”
The borough of Hartlepool already has 200 nationally listed buildings.
The Locally Listed Buildings document is in response to a Government idea to bolster civic pride.
Buildings included on the list will not be registered nationally or have special planning rights but is a way of highlighting the “significance” of a building to the town.
A selection panel whittled the nomination list of more than 240 down to the final 188.
John Darwin, 61, served around half his sentence and returned to live in Hartlepool.
Anne, 59, who was locked up for six-and-a-half years but released last March, is now estranged from her husband and was reported to be living in the Leeds area.
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Weather for Hartlepool
Monday 28 May 2012
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